Electric signaling apparatus



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

B. J. NOYES. ELECTRIC SIGNALING APPARATUS. No. 5'78,115. Patented Mar. 2,1897.

MIT/M55555. I A //5 77 (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2,

B. J. NOYES. ELEGTRIG SIGNALING APPARATUS.

No 578,115. Patented Mar. 2, 1897.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

B. J. NOYES. ELEGTRIG SIGNALING APPARATUS.

No. 578,115. Patented Mar. 2, 1897.

fll l l l l l l l l r UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BERNICE J. NOYES, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC SIGNALING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 578,1 15, dated March 2, 1897.

Application filed July 21, 1896,

To all 1/;71/07'1t it may concern-- Be it known that I, BERNICE J. NOYES, of Boston, county of Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Electric Signaling Apparatus, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

In police-signal systems it is customary to provide the signal-boxes with multiple-signal transmitters constructed and arranged to transmit several unimportant and certain important or special signals or calls, the unimportant signals or calls indicating on duty and the important or special calls indicating telephone or wagon, and all of these signals or calls have been received at a central station, at which point means have been provided for audibly distinguishing the important from the unimportant calls. This differentiation was produced by employing an alarm arranged to be operated only upon the reception of the important calls, the unimportant calls being received silently. The stable where the wagon is kept which is to be sent to the boxes calling for it is usually located a short distance from the central station, and it has been connected with said central station by means of electric signaling apparatus, which comprises a multiple-signal transmitter locatedat the central station and a receiver at the stable, and whenever a wagon-call was received at the central station the attendant in charge would set and operate the multiple-signal transmitter and thereby transmit such signal to the stable. In thus receiving the wagon-call at the central station and then retransmitting it manually to the stable by operating the multiplesignal transmitter frequent mistakes arise by reason of carelessness or excitement of the attendant in charge, and in consequence the wrong signal is transmitted and the wagon sent to the wrong box.

In another application, Serial No. 598,839, filed concurrently with this a signal system was shown wherein the wagon-call was sent directly from the signal-boxes on the street to the stable automatically through the central station, so that while such call was duly received at the central station it was also Serial No. 600,075. (No model.)

duly sent to the stable without attention on the part of the attendant in charge of such station. The mistakes above referred to were thus obviated. In said application the onduty calls were transmitted to the central station like the wagon-calls, but were not automatically repeated or sent to the stable. In carrying out said invention the signaltransmitters in the signal-boxes on the street were adapted to send in addition to the regular signaling impulses a differentiating impulse with some calls and not with others viz., with the wagon-call and not with the on-duty callsand a signal-receivin g instrumentsuch, for instance, as a message-recorder-was employed at the central station to receive all the calls, and the stable was connected with the central station by an auxiliary or local circuit, and an automatic switch provided at said central station, which was so constructed and arranged as to be actuated by means of the differentiating impulses only, which were transmitted by the signal-transmitters at the signal-boxes. The differentiatin g impulse therein employed was an impulse of long duration as contrasted with an impulse of short duration, yet any other kind of an impulse which differed from the regular signal impulsescould have been employed, and when the switch was operated the auxiliary or local circuit was brought into operative condition, 1'. 6., into condition to be operated to in turn operate any signal-re ceiving instrument at the stable that may be included therein or connected therewith. A circuit-operating device was provided for operating said auxiliary circuit, when thus brought into operative condition, which was operated by the main signaling-circuit, and in case there should be several main signaling-circuits connected with a single central station to which a single auxiliary or local stable-circuit was connected there would be an equal number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit. The wagon-call was accompanied by the differentiating impulse which preceded it, and thus set or operated the switch, after which the wagon-signal transmitted from the box was repeated automatically from the central station over the auxiliary circuit to the stable, although it will also be duly recorded on a messagerecording instrument at the central station. A restoring device was provided for restoring said switch which was adapted to be operated mechanically at the end of the signal to instantly restore the switch. The message-recording instrument employed at the central station comprised a paper-moving train of wheelwork and paper-marking devices, and for simplicity said paper-moving train was utilized as a motor mechanism for operating or setting the automatic switch and for restoring it, said mechanism being under the control of an electromagnet. In said application four signaling-circuits were shown and a single auxiliary or stable circuit and four circuit-operating devices provided for said auxiliary or stable circuit, one for each signaling-circuit, and a single switch was provided for said auxiliary or stable circuit, which was operated by or controlled by the differentiating impulses for bringing said auxiliary or stable circuit into operative condition or into condition to be operated by any one of said circuit-operatin g devices.

It so happens that frequently signals are being received on two of the signaling-cir cuits at the same time, and with the apparatus constructed and arranged as shown in said application if the signal which started the recorder should be a wagon-call and the signal which immediately followed it, but on another circuit, should be an on-duty call and should be received while the wagon-call was still being received, then said on-duty call would interfere with the proper transmission of the wagon-call over the auxiliary or stable circuit, and hence the wagon-call would be mixed and lost.

This invention has for its object to improve the construction of the apparatus or system shown in said application to the end that the above-named trouble may be prevented.

In carrying out this invention I have provided the auxiliary or stable circuit with a number of switches as well as circuit-operating devices, there being as many switches and as many circuit-operating devices as there are signaling-circuits, and said switches, as well as circuit-operating devices, are connected with the auxiliary circuit in multiple are or in such manner that no circuit-operating device can operate said auxiliary circuit unless the switch corresponding to it is closed. A number of operating devices are provided for said switches which are adapted to be operated by the motor mechanis1n,but controlled by the main circuits directly or indirectly, and independent restoring devices are provided for said operating devices.

Figure 1 shows in plan view a message-recording instrument constructed and arranged to carry out my present invention, having a number of switches for the auxiliary or stable circuit, means for operating them, and means for restoring them, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said circuit; Fig. 2, a side view of the message-recording instrument shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 a diagram of the circuits.

The signaling-circuits a, four being herein shown, lead from or connect within the central station, they each having included therein a receiving-relay a. Each signaling-circuit will have, as usual, as many street signal-boxes as desired, and each street signalboX will contain a multiple-signal transmitter adapted to send several calls, some of which will be accompanied by a diiferentiating impulse, which will be herein referred to as an impulse of long duration as contrasted with an impulse of short duration. Such a signalbox is old and forms in itself no part of my present invention.

At the central station a message-recording instrument is shown, adapted to receive all the signals transmitted from the boxes of all the circuits. This message-recording instrument as herein shown comprises a motor mechanism adapted to operate the paperfeeding devices, and hence herein called the paper-moving train, and a number of paper-marking devices,one for each circuit, connected with the instrument, they each having as an operating member an electromagnet, (represented at 1),) which when energized attracts an armature Z), pivoted at b and carrying a recording-pen D The paper-moving train consists, essentially, of a drum B, containing the usual main spring of the motor, a gear 0, formed on or secured to said drum, which engages a pinion c, secured to a shaft 0 carrying a toothed wheel 0 which engages a pinion 0 secured to a shaft 0 carrying a toothed wheel 0 which engages a pinion 0 secured to ashaft 0 carrying the escape-wheel 0 On the escape-wheel shaft 0 a projection is secured, which is engaged by a releasing-levern, which is secured to a rock-shaft n, which has secured to it a downwardly-extended projection 02 engaged by an arm "a extended from a short arm at, secured to a shaft a, carrying the armature n of the main starting-magnet M.

As the message-recordin g instrument is designed to be placed in a local or normally open circuit, the armature of the starting-magnet is normally retracted. When the armature is attracted, the arm n by engaging the short arm n on the rock-shat t, rocks said shaft and thereby raises the releasi n g-lever n. It is herein designed that the motor shall run a certain length of time each time it is released, and hence it has a stop-wheel 0, provided with notches 0, and the releasing-lever n has projecting from it a pin 0 which enters any one of said notches that may be brought into position beneath it. The stop-wheel herein represented has three such notches, and hence moves one-third of a revolution each time the train is released.

A message-recordin g instrument constructed substantially in the manner so far described is old, and hence in itself forms no part of my present invention, and in lieu of it any other well-known form or construction of message-recording instrument may be employed. In such a message-recording instrument the starting-magnet M is included in a local circuit 62, having in one side of the battery several branch wires, each including one of the recording-pen magnets b and the armature of one of the main receiving-relays, so that said startingmagnet ill is adapted to respond to the action of any one of the main receiving-relays, while the recording-pen magnets are operated, respectively, by the main receiving-relays. Au auxiliary circuit or stable-circuit 6 leads from the central station containing the message-recording instrument to the stable where the wagon is kept, and over this circuit the wagon-calls are antomatically repeated. This auxiliary circuit e contains any suitable signalreceiving instrument, such, for instance, as a recorder e or bell 6 or both, as may be desired, or in fact any other kind of a signal-receiving instrument. This auxiliary circuit 6 has a number of operating devices for it corresponding to the number of signaling-circuits connected to the central station, there being four such circuit-operating devices herein shown.

For simplicity the armatures Z) of the recording-pen magnets serve as the actuators of these circuit-operating devices, they closing upon a contact e when their magnets are energized, and said circuit-operatin g devices I) e are herein shown as arranged in multiple are in order that any one of them may operate the auxiliary circuit a. It will be seen that these circuit-operatin g devices will operate each and every time the recordingpen magnets operate; but as it is only desired that the auxiliary circuit 6 shall be operated upon the reception of a wagon-call, or that call having a distinguishing or differentiating impulse preceding it, switches are provided, there being one for each circuit-operating device, and said switches are connected or included in the multiple-arc connection of the auxiliary circuit with said circuit-operating devices, so that the auxiliary circuits 6 will not be operated by one of the circuit-operating devices unless the switch included in the multiplearc connection with it is closed. These switches, four being herein shown, are represented at ff, as when closed the auxiliary or stable circuit 6 will be closed at such point, so that it may be operated by the circuit-operating device, which is arranged or included in the multiple-arc connection with it to thereby transmit or repeat the wagonsignal. As the differentiating impulses which it is herein designed to use are of long duration, as contrasted with the regular signaling impulses, which are of short duration, the means employed for operating or closing said switchesff require for their operation a long interval of time, and for this purpose a separate and independent device is provided for each switch. These switch-operating devices are all made alike, so that only one of them will be described.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, a toothed or serrated wheel t' is secured to one of the shafts of the train, as, for instance, it may be secured to the shaft 0 and a toothed sector 11, also having a serrated or toothed edge, is loosely or pivotally connected to a short arm 1' projecting downwardly from and loosely mounted upon a rod i said sector being arranged to be moved into and out of engagement with said serrated wheel i, and when so moved and held in engagement with said wheel 1' will be turned on its pivot and brought into engagement with the lower contact-pen f of the switch f f and will act to raise said pen f to close the switch. The sector i, thus moved into engagement with the contact-pen f, will be held in such position by the pressure of the contact-spring upon it until released.

The means herein shown for moving the sector 2" into engagement with the toothed wheel 1' consists of a bell-crank lever t loosely mounted upon a rod 11 one arm of which is connected by a link 1' with the armature-lever Z) and the other arm of which carries alaterally-projecting stud 2' which engages the short arm 1?, carrying the sector, and whenever said armature b is attracted the bellcrank lever will be turned on the rod i as a pivot, throwing forward the short arm and thereby moving the sector 2" into engagement with the toothed wheel i. As the armature b is retracted the short arm i will be permitted to resume its normal position, and unless the sector 2" has been raised into engagement with and so as to be held by the contact-pen f it will also be restored to its normal position. The short arm 2' has depend ing from it a stop 2' against which the sector 2" abuts and by which said sector is held in position to be thrown into engagement With the toothed wheel 1'. As a restoring device for the sector 1' when in engagement with and held by the contact-pen fl have herein shown a cam i (see dotted lines, Fig. 2,) loosely placed upon a shaft 1' positively driven by the motor mechanism, and said cam is held pressed against a shoulder by a spider-plate secured to said shaft t the arms of which bear frictionally upon or against said-cam 2'. The cam 2' has a projection 2' which engages aprojection on the bell-crank arm or lever 2' and is restrained from rotation by said bellcrank arm or lever as the shaft 1' revolves, unless released, in which case it will make a single revolution, being then stopped by said bell-crank arm or lever. The cam i has also a projection i which as said cam is revolved will engage the contact-pen f and lift it a little higher than it is held by the sector 2', and thus relieve the pressure upon the sector and permit it to return to its normal position.

It will be seen that each time a pen-magnet operates a bell-crank lever i will be operated,

and hence a restoring device will operate for every call or signal, but as the sector t" will only be lifted into engagement with the contact-pen f on the occurrence of a differentiating impulse said cam will only operate as a restoring device at such time.

As there are four switches f f there will be four operating devices for it and a restoring device for each operating device, and on the shaft 0 there will be four toothed or serrated wheels 2'.

When a wagon -call is transmitted from one of the boxes, the main receiving-relay of one of the circuits will operate,-causing the starting-magnet M to operate and release the train and also causing one of the pen-mag nets to operate, and upon the occurrence of the impulse of long duration the switch ff will be closed, after which the signal or call will follow, which will be automatically trans mitted or relayed to the stable by the circuit operating device 1) e operating the auxiliary circuit while the switch f f is closed, and as soon as the call or signal has been sent the restoring device will restore the switch.

I do not desire to limit my invention to any particular construction of operating device or independent restoring device for the switches, as it is obvious that they may be made in manydifferent ways and come within the spirit and scope of this invention.

I claim 1. In an electric signaling apparatus, a num ber of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not with others, and a sig nal-receiving instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signal-receiving instrument operated by it, a number of switches for controlling the operative condition of said auxiliary circuit, corresponding to the number of main signaling-circuits, means for operating said switches controlled by the differentiating impulses, and an independent restoring device for each switch, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main signaling-circuits, substantially as described.

2. In an electric signalingapparatus, anumber of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not with others, and a signal-receiving instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signal-receiving instrument operated by it, a number of switches for controlling the operative condition of said auxiliary circuit, corresponding to the number of main signaling-circuits, means for operating said switches controlled by the differentiating impulses, and an independent train-controlled restoring device for each switch, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main signalingcircuits, substantially as described.

3. In an electric signaling apparatus,a number of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit a difierentiating impulse with some signals and not with others, and a signal-receivin g instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signal-receiving instrument operated by it, a number of circuitclosing switches for said auxiliary circuit, independent operating devices for said switches controlled by the differentiating impulses, and restoring devices for said switches, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main signaling-circuits, substantially as described.

4. In an electric signaling apparatus,a number of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit signal impulses of short and long duration, and a signal-receiving instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signalreceiving instrument operated by it, avnumber of switches for controlling the operative condition of said circuit, corresponding to the number of main signaling-circuits, independent operating devices for said switches controlled by the impulses of long duration only, a restoring device for said switches, and a number of circuitoperating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main signaling-circuit, substantially as described.

5. In an electric signaling apparatus,anumberof main signaling-circuits, signal-transmittin g devices for operating them, adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not with others, and a message-recording instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, having a papermoving train and paper-marking devices, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signalreceiving instrument operated by it, a number of switches for controlling the operative condition of said auxiliary circuit, independent operating devices for said switches operated by the paper-movin g train, and restoring devices for said switches also operated by said paper-moving train, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit, corresponding to and operated by said main signaling-circuits, substantially as described.

6. In an electric signaling apparatus,a number of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating said circuit adapted to transmit signal impulses of short and long duration, and a message-recording instrument for receiving all the signals of all the circuits, having a paper-movin g train and paper-marking devices, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signal-receiving instru- Lil ment operated by it, a number of switches for controlling the operative condition of said auxiliary circuit, independent operating devices for said switches operated by said paper-moving train on reception of the impulses of long duration only, and restoring devices for said switches also operated by said papermoving train, and a number of circuit-operatin g devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main sig naling-circuit, substantially as described.

7. In an electric signaling apparatus,a number of main signaling-circuits, signal-trans mitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit signal impulses of short and long duration, and a message-recording instrument for receiving all the circuits having a paper-moving train and paper-marking devices, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a signal-receiving instrument operated by it, a number of circuit-closing switches for said auxiliary circuit, independent operating devices therefor operated by the paper-moving train which require for their operation a long interval of time to be operated by the inipulse of long duration only, restoring devices for said switches, and a number of circuitoperating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by said main signaling-circuit, substantially as described.

8. In an electric signaling apparatus, anumber of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not others, a message-recording instrument having a paper-moving train and a number of paper-marking devices corresponding to the number of signaling-circuits, each paper-markin g device having an electromagnet as an operating member operated by one of the signaling-circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a number of switches for controlling its operative condition, independent operating devices for said switches operated by the paper-moving train but controlled respectively by the electromagnets of the paper-marking devices, and restoring devices for said switches, and a number of circuitoperating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by the main signaling-circuit, substantially as described.

9. In an electric signaling apparatus,a number of main signaling-circuits, signal-transmittin g devices for operating them adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not others, a message-recording instrument having a paper-moving train and a number of paper-marking devices corresponding to the number of signaling-circuits, each paper-markin g device having an electromagnet as an operating member operated by one of the signaling-circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a number of switches for controlling its operative condition, independent operating devices for said switches oper ated by the paper-moving train but controlled respectively by the electromagnets of the paper-in arkin g devices, and independent restorin g devices for said switches operated by said paper-moving train and controlled respectively by the electromagnets of said papermarking devices, and a number of circuitoperating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to and operated by the main signaling-circuits, substantially as described.

10. In an electric signaling apparatus, a number of main signaling-circuits, signaltransmitting devices for operating them adapted to transmit a differentiating impulse with some signals and not others, a messagerecording instrument having a paper-moving train and a number of paper-marking devices corresponding to the number of signaling-circuits, each paper-marking device having an electromagnet as an operating member operated by one of the signaling-circuits, combined with an auxiliary circuit, a number of switches for controlling its operative condition, independent operating devices for said switches operated by the paper-moving train but controlled respectively by the electromagnets of the paper-marking devices, and restoring devices for said switches, and a number of circuit-operating devices for said auxiliary circuit corresponding to the number of signaling-circuits, the armature-levers of the electromagnets of the paper-marking devices forming the actuators of said circuitoperating devices, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

BERNICE J. NOYES. Witnesses:

HARRY O. ROBINSON, 'F. II. DAVIS. 

